Nigella Lawson, making her debut as a judge on The Great British Bake Off this week, has addressed rumours of friction with fellow judge Paul Hollywood. Lawson, who replaced Prue Leith in January, revealed that she has given Hollywood the nickname 'Professor Precision'.
Lawson told The Guardian that she and Hollywood regularly tease each other, stating, "One of the many lovely things about Paul is that he’s good at being teased. I called him ‘Professor Precision’, then he teased me back and suddenly it all relaxed." She described Hollywood as more playful than his on-camera persona suggests and noted that they "complement each other."
Reports of tension between the judges emerged earlier this year after filming began, with the MailOnline alleging Lawson was frustrated by Hollywood. Channel 4 denied these suggestions at the time. Kiran Nataraja, Channel 4’s director of content strategy, also reportedly made light of the rumours at the Edinburgh TV Festival in August.
Lawson previously told The Times that she anticipated varied public reactions to their dynamic on the programme. Hollywood has also praised Lawson, saying she "fitted in beautifully" with the team.
The new series of The Great British Bake Off, hosted by Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding, is set to return on Channel 4 on September 22 at 8pm.